Dane Oliver

A celebration of one of the greatest novels ever written and a triumph of theatrical imagination. Will Geer's Theatricum Botanicum presents Moby Dick-Rehearsed by Orson Welles.

The Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle (LADCC), which presented its first awards for excellence in Los Angeles, Orange County, and Ventura County a half-century ago, has begun the gala celebration of its 50th anniversary by announcing its nominations for the year 2018 (Dec. 1, 2017 - Nov. 30, 2018).

The nominees for the 29th Annual LA STAGE Alliance Ovation Awards, celebrating theatrical excellence and achievement throughout Los Angeles, were announced this week.

Will Geer's Theatricum Botanicum presents the first-ever revival of a historical melodrama about the Haitian revolution that graced the stage at New York's Lafayette Theatre in Harlem in 1938 as part of the Federal Theatre Project. Haiti by William DuBois will join Theatricum's summer repertory season beginning July 28. Performances will continue at Theatricum's beautiful outdoor venue in Topanga through Sept. 29.

Theatricum Botanicum takes on Shakespeare's stinging drama CORIOLANUS this summer on its outdoor stage in Topanga Canyon and offers an intriguing look at the cynicism of politics and power. The work includes a massive cast of 45. Some are seasoned veterans and many are young actors in the early stages of their careers, including a sweet Geer granddaughter (Quinnlyn Scheppner). Together they bring forth the early days of Rome when democracy was in its infancy and mob mentality could turn the tide in the blink of an eye.

William Shakespeare'sCoriolanus, a tragedy based on the life of legendary Roman leader Caius Marcius Coriolanus, opens the summer season at Will Geer's Theatricum Botanicum on June 2.

Lynchburg, Virginia. The former site of a thriving cotton mill is now an impoverished neighborhood. Deeply affected by all of the recent killings, of young black men like himself, Ruffrino, a 14 year old militant, incites riots at school and online. More and more at odds with his mother and grandfather, the boys' anger grows beyond containment while the family home literally sinks into the cotton field, and no one seems to notice but him.

Samovar Subway Ensemble's Hollywood Fringe Festival production of Thanksgiving, a world premiere comedy by Tiffany Cascio, is the winner of three Fringe Awards (out of five nominations) and also received Pick of the Fringe designation from Combined Artform and Fringe Management. The acclaimed comedy will play four Encore! Producers' Award performances on Friday, July 14 at 8pm; Sunday, July 16 at 2pm; Saturday, July 22 at 2pm; and Sunday, July 23 at 2pm. Running time is 90 minutes.

William Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice opens the summer season at Will Geer's Theatricum Botanicum on June 3.

Samovar Subway Ensemble has announced a Hollywood Fringe Festival production of Thanksgiving, a world premiere play by Tiffany Cascio and directed by Kitty Lindsay.

William Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice opens the summer season at Will Geer's Theatricum Botanicum on June 3.

?Samovar Subway Ensemble has announced a Hollywood Fringe Festival production of The Gentrification Cycle, two short plays written by G.D. Kimble and directed by Christina Cigala. Jen Tries Vacation and Locomotive Repair in Three Easy Steps will feature (in alphabetical order) Jon Gentry, Emily McLeod, Suzan Mikiel, Adam Tomei, Brian Wallace, Claire Winters, and Allison Youngberg. There will be five performances at the Dorie Theatre @ The Complex in Hollywood - Friday 6/3 at 7:30pm (press preview); Thursday 6/9 at 9pm; Thursday 6/16 at 7pm; Thursday 6/23 at 10:30pm; and Friday 6/24 at 6:45pm. Total running time will be 70 minutes.

I confess to being very confused by the production. In this modern twist on Shakespeare's classic Romeo and Juliet, women play men and men play women. Or rather, women play male characters as men and men play female characters as women…I think.

As part of the 2015 Hollywood Fringe Festival, Mine is Yours Theatre Company will remount their adventurous 90-minute production of R&J, a gender-reversed Romeo and Juliet, which had a successful preview run last November at Theatre of NOTE. While remaining faithful to Shakespeare's language, R&J transforms Romeo into Romea, Juliet into Julian, Friar Laurence into Sister Laurence, etc., in an extravaganza of gender-swapping that makes this classic love story resonate in an electrifying new way. 

Mine is Yours theatre company, now in their second season, is itching to share their first contemporary production with Los Angeles! Bachelorette by Leslye Headland, directed by Jessica Hanna and assistant directed by Mallin Alter, will run for four weeks this Spring: March 20 - April 12, Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm and Sundays at 7pm. Tickets are $18 at the door, $15 online, and presale tickets (purchased before 3/13) are $12 each.

Throughout two thirds of Bill Cain's political thriller EQUIVOCATION, a confused Shagspeare (known to us otherwise as Shakespeare and played by Ted Barton) keeps asking questions and getting answers that don't make sense. Finally a circumspect Father Garnet (Franc Ross) tells him to look for the question beneath the question and suddenly the pieces of the puzzle start to fall into place.

According to the history books, the infamous Gunpowder Plot was a conspiracy by England's marginalized Catholics to blow up Protestant King James I and his entire Parliament. Or was it? What if the official story concealed a darker truth? And what if King James had commanded William Shakespeare to write a play -- a "true historie" -- on order to further cement the government's account? These are some of the questions asked in Equivocation, Bill Cain's witty exploration of political power and artistic integrity. Winner of the prestigious 2010 Steinberg/ATCA New Play Award, Equivocation opens on Sept. 5 at Will Geer's Theatricum Botanicum in Topanga. BroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast in action below!

According to the history books, the infamous Gunpowder Plot was a conspiracy by England's marginalized Catholics to blow up Protestant King James I and his entire Parliament. Or was it? What if the official story concealed a darker truth? And what if King James had commanded William Shakespeare to write a play - a "true historie" - in order to further cement the government's account? These are some of the questions asked in Equivocation, Bill Cain's witty exploration of political power and artistic integrity. Winner of the prestigious 2010 Steinberg/ATCA New Play Award and called "one of the most bracingly intelligent, sizzlingly theatrical American plays in a decade" by Variety, Equivocation opens on Sept. 5 at Will Geer's Theatricum Botanicum in Topanga.

Will Geer's Theatricum Botanicum kicks off its All-Shakespeare Summer Season in celebration of the Bard's 450th birthday with a gender-reversed Lear for the 21st century, opening tonight, Saturday, June 7 at 8 p.m. in the theater's spectacular outdoor amphitheater in Topanga Canyon.